Most Americans Worry About the Cost of Specialty Meds: Poll

As the debate over pharmaceutical pricing continues to rage, a steady stream of reports, charts and surveys are being issued in support of the various arguments over cost and value. The latest example is a poll that finds a large majority of Americans are mostly satisfied with the prices of their medicines, but worry they will not be able to afford expensive specialty medicines, if needed

Specifically, 38% percent of the 2,010 people who were surveyed earlier this month reported that they are very satisfied with prescription drug prices and another 40% are somewhat satisfied. But 57% are very concerned they will not be able to afford specialty medicines in the future, and another 35% are somewhat concerned.

“This tells us the system has been working for people in the past and that their premiums help them to absorb the cost,” says John Rother, chief executive of the National Coalition on Health Care, a diverse collection of companies, unions, professional medical societies, insurers and religious groups, among others, that sponsored the poll.

“But this is also a red flag for the pharmaceutical industry and for Capitol Hill that price is an issue that needs to be addressed. Because when we asked them about $1,000 a pill [for a hepatitis C treatment], the reaction was pretty negative.”

He was referring to Sovaldi, the hepatitis C treatment that is sold by Gilead Sciences and costs $84,000 for a 12-week treatment, or $1,000 a day. The drug maker and some health economists say the cost is worthwhile, given that the drug produces a high cure rate in patients and alternative treatments, notably liver transplants, can be more expensive.

But Sovaldi pricing has galvanized growing concern over the rising prices of medicines, particularly those for treating some cancers and rare diseases. And the non-profit group is hoping to use the survey to convince Congress, where some members have already queried Gilead about Sovaldi pricing, to take a closer look at prescription drug pricing.

Interestingly, only 1% of those surveyed had taken a specialty drug during the previous year, but their responses to several questions indicated that pricing, in general, is a central concern. For instance, 29% say they had not taken a medicine due to cost and 51% percent believe the cost of prescription drugs affects insurance premiums “a lot.”

Meanwhile, 85% say that focusing research efforts into finding treatments for cancer and Alzheimer’s is important, but drug makers must find ways to become more efficient in order to bring prices down by using new technologies, rather than constantly increasing prices. Only 15% believe society should be prepared to pay whatever these medicines cost.

And 86% agree that drug makers should realize a fair return on their R&D investment, but need to price medicines in a way that the entire health care system can sustain the costs. However, this view varies with age – 77% those between 18 and 29 years old agree with this notion, but 94% of those 65 years of age and older support the concept.

When asked what drug makers can do to lower prices, the respondents pointed to cutting back on direct-to-consumer marketing, establishing limits on price increases for existing drugs no higher than the inflation rate and collaborating with others to reduce R&D costs.

Here is something the pharmaceutical industry will want to note: 64% believe there is insufficient transparency surrounding pricing and 25% are uncertain. To improve transparency, the respondents agreed that drug makers should publish a list of price increases for existing medicines and provide more comparative information about new and old treatments.

About Pharmalot

Pharmalot explores the fast-moving, complicated world that develops and markets medicines – and the drug makers that are attempting to replenish their pipelines while grappling with pricing and regulatory dictates, among many other challenges. Writer Ed Silverman has covered the pharmaceutical industry for nearly two decades and has closely followed the many hurdles facing drug companies as they move ideas from the laboratory to the medicine chest. He started Pharmalot while at The Star-Ledger of New Jersey and previously worked at New York Newsday and Investor’s Business Daily. Email Ed Silverman at ed.silverman@wsj.com, and follow him on Twitter @Pharmalot.